1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION:
This invention relates to a capsule charging apparatus for charging capsules with powdery, granular, or liquid pharmaceutics and foodstuffs.
2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART:
Powdery, granular, or liquid pharmaceutics have been stuffed into capsules made of gelatins so that they can be swallowed with ease when patients take these pharmaceutics. A capsule made of hard gelatins has a hollow body portion and a hollow cap portion. The diameter of the cap portion is somewhat greater than that of the body portion, and the open end of the body portion is fitted into the open end of the cap portion. Before being charged with some pharmaceutics, the capsule is supplied in the "unlocked" state in which the body portion is fitted into the cap portion only loosely. When the capsule is charged with a certain filling, the unlocked body and cap portions must be separated from each other in advance, and after the charging of the body portion with the filling is completed, the body and cap portions which have been separated from each other must be fitted together again.
In order to automate these series of processes, the applicants of the invention have developed the capsule charging apparatus which is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,731,979.
This capsule charging apparatus has a capsule moving unit. The capsule moving unit, after being supplied with a plurality of arranged capsules with their body portions facing downward, separates the capsules into the body and cap portions and then fits them together again, while conveying the capsules. The capsule moving unit is disposed on and fixed to a stand that is internally provided with a driving unit, and a charging unit for charging the body portion with a certain filling while the body portion is being conveyed by the capsule charging unit is also disposed on and fixed to the stand.
In recent years, granular and oily fillings of pharmaceutics in addition to powdery ones have been used as a filling of the capsules. Normally, a conventional capsule charging apparatus can charge the capsules only with a certain form of fillings. Therefore, when the fillings with different forms are stuffed into the capsules, it is necessary to detach the whole charging device from the stand and then attach to the stand another charging device with which a desired form of fillings can be stuffed into the capsules. The conventional capsule charging apparatus is disadvantageous in that, although the charging devices should be positioned in such a manner that the outlet openings for charging face the body portions being conveyed by the capsule moving unit accurately, it is difficult to achieve the accurate positioning of the charging devices, so the replacement of the charging devices takes long time.